[PHLHarmonic]

Hi all. Haven't posted on here in a long time. I'm wondering if anyone has any input on the Cascara versus the Black Star in terms of comfort and listening versatility. My inclination is that the Black Star could be better on both fronts, but info seems limited.

 

[Visceral]

Hi all. Haven't posted on here in a long time. I'm wondering if anyone has any input on the Cascara versus the Black Star in terms of comfort and listening versatility. My inclination is that the Black Star could be better on both fronts, but info seems limited.

Can’t speak to Cascara but I’ll be receiving BlackStar tomorrow. Impressions to follow.

 

[1oad3r]

Can’t speak to Cascara but I’ll be receiving BlackStar tomorrow. Impressions to follow.

Excited for you….look forward to hearing your impressions

 

[Gdrock33]

I have Cascara on the way, which will be my first CA iem. Really looking forward to getting them. I appreciate a small shop in the US turning out these designs. Appreciate all the discussions in this thread.

 

[fejnomit]

I have Cascara on the way, which will be my first CA iem. Really looking forward to getting them. I appreciate a small shop in the US turning out these designs. Appreciate all the discussions in this thread.

I think you will enjoy. Give them a little time. I find that the bass presents first. Give it some brain burn-in. After 25+ hours on them I am hearing a wide open sound stage with great detail in addition to the addictive bass tuning.

 

[Gdrock33]

I think you will enjoy. Give them a little time. I find that the bass presents first. Give it some brain burn-in. After 25+ hours on them I am hearing a wide open sound stage with great detail in addition to the addictive bass tuning.

That sounds good. Will take your advice and respond back.

 

[PixelSquish]

I think you will enjoy. Give them a little time. I find that the bass presents first. Give it some brain burn-in. After 25+ hours on them I am hearing a wide open sound stage with great detail in addition to the addictive bass tuning.

Yeah I asked before for people to give thoughts on the cascara sounds stage versus other IEMs.

Nobody answered but your words of a wide open stage resonates with what I hear. The soundstage sounds quite huge to me; could easily use the word holographic.

 

[fejnomit]

For sure. As wide as Bonneville, but more open sounding because the lower mids aren't quite as big so you get a tad more contrast between sub-bass and upper-mids, which to me opens things up. I am listening to my Cascaras on the RS8, Ultra filter, Class A, Turbo, Soundfield plug-in and the PC1704 Mastermind plug-in and it's sonic bliss...

 

[Amadeo Nospherathu]

About 8hours listening with the Bonneville over the past 2 days. What an absolute joy to listen to, I’m genuinely overwhelmed with how great these are. Initial impressions were good but it took a few sessions for me to fully comprehend everything they were offering. At first I was floored by the volume, control and quality of the bass, then the detail and wonderful timbre of the midrange, then the airy presentation up-top. When it all came together I’m not embarrassed to say I had quite an emotional reaction - this is what I've been searching for!

Some notes I took while listening, in no particular order;

• Lively, musical, captivating, immersive
• Warm, textured, full sound and yet airy, huge soundstage
• Incredible balance, coherence across the board
• Detail, texture, timbre of the midrange is particularly intoxicating
• Substantial, impactful bass that is never overwhelming or bloated, always controlled

For context, I have numerous other IEM’s in the 1.5k-2k range and the Bonnevilles are a significant upgrade on all of them. I think this makes them incredible value for money. Lastly, I love the unit design, a beautiful hybrid of organic and technical lines, which in many ways aligns well with its sound.











Lastly, I bought these blind on the strength of the thoughtful impressions left here. So my thanks to each of you, and in particular @Rockwell75 for the particularly detailed write ups and comparisons. I'm really grateful for the efforts!

Thanks mate, that's a great review. I look forward to hearing them.

 

[Visceral]

Excited for you….look forward to hearing your impressions

Ok, here are my impressions after 2 hours. I am using stock cable (3.5mm) with WM1ZM2

The Black Star sounds very clean and crisp. Bass focuses on quality over quantity. Solid punch and WELL controlled.. Absolutely no bloat from the mid bass. Mids come off pretty linear, maybe a tad lean. Guitars have some fantastic texture to them. Female vocals are forward and frankly intoxicating. Treble is best described as ‘safe’, maybe a little on the ‘dark’ side. Cymbal strikes have a good zing with just the right amount of decay. Not a whole lot of air but enough to discern between instruments. Stage has good width, decent depth but definitely a more intimate experience. Respectable imaging and dynamics. Very enjoyable and a great complimentary set to the Bonnevilles. I think after a bit of burn in and cable rolling, these things will polish right up. The tuning immediately reminded me of the Khoas, just not as technically proficient. But that set is also $3.5k. If I had to guess, I think they’d graph as a modest W-Shaped signature. Another impulse buy I don’t regret!

 

[Visceral]

Ok, here are my impressions after 2 hours. I am using stock cable (3.5mm) with WM1ZM2

The BlackStar sounds very clean and crisp. Bass focuses on quality over quantity. Solid punch and WELL controlled.. Absolutely no bloat from the mid bass. Mids come off pretty linear, maybe a tad lean. Guitars have some fantastic texture to them. Female vocals are forward and frankly intoxicating. Treble is best described as ‘safe’, maybe a little on the ‘dark’ side. Cymbal strikes have a good zing with just the right amount of decay. Not a whole lot of air but enough to discern between instruments. Stage has good width, decent depth but definitely a more intimate experience. Respectable imaging and dynamics. Very enjoyable and a great complimentary set to the Bonnevilles. I think after a bit of burn in and cable rolling, these things will polish right up. The tuning immediately reminded me of the Khoas, just not as technically proficient. But that set is also $3.5k. If I had to guess, I think they’d graph as a modest W-Shaped signature. Another impulse buy I don’t regret!

I honestly can’t get over how freaking good string instruments sound. Outstanding timbre and texture.

 

[cats4cans]

Another impulse buy I don’t regret!

I agree with everything you said, but this especially. It’s going to take me some juggling, because I was already a little overextended, but I’m definitely keeping the Black Stars.
What tips are you using?

 

[PHLHarmonic]

Ok, here are my impressions after 2 hours. I am using stock cable (3.5mm) with WM1ZM2

The BlackStar sounds very clean and crisp. Bass focuses on quality over quantity. Solid punch and WELL controlled.. Absolutely no bloat from the mid bass. Mids come off pretty linear, maybe a tad lean. Guitars have some fantastic texture to them. Female vocals are forward and frankly intoxicating. Treble is best described as ‘safe’, maybe a little on the ‘dark’ side. Cymbal strikes have a good zing with just the right amount of decay. Not a whole lot of air but enough to discern between instruments. Stage has good width, decent depth but definitely a more intimate experience. Respectable imaging and dynamics. Very enjoyable and a great complimentary set to the Bonnevilles. I think after a bit of burn in and cable rolling, these things will polish right up. The tuning immediately reminded me of the Khoas, just not as technically proficient. But that set is also $3.5k. If I had to guess, I think they’d graph as a modest W-Shaped signature. Another impulse buy I don’t regret!

Thanks for the impressions. All things aside, they're roughly $200-300 more than the Cascaras when you take the accessories out of the equation. I guess my question is to whether or not they're really worth the extra money, considering you're forced into the accessories. How is the comfort, and what kinds of genres do you usually listen to? I see you have the Xe6 in your signature; I had one for a little bit and loved it (and honestly wish I kept it, although I don't have that kind of cash to spend these days). It might be a bit apples and oranges, but that's the kind of tuning I personally enjoy. I've been out of the loop and it seems like the price to quality ratio in the $500-1000 range has gotten a lot better in the last year or so.

 

[Visceral]

I agree with everything you said, but this especially. It’s going to take me some juggling, because I was already a little overextended, but I’m definitely keeping the Black Stars.
What tips are you using?

Currently SpinFit Omni but I will tip roll a little more over the next few days.. I have an outrageous collection of tips lol. In my humble opinion, tips have a more substantial impact on sound than cables. I roll both, but tips are well worth an investment.

 

[Visceral]

Thanks for the impressions. All things aside, they're roughly $200-300 more than the Cascaras when you take the accessories out of the equation. I guess my question is to whether or not they're really worth the extra money, considering you're forced into the accessories. How is the comfort, and what kinds of genres do you usually listen to? I see you have the Xe6 in your signature; I had one for a little bit and loved it (and honestly wish I kept it, although I don't have that kind of cash to spend these days). It might be a bit apples and oranges, but that's the kind of tuning I personally enjoy. I've been out of the loop and it seems like the price to quality ratio in the $500-1000 range has gotten a lot better in the last year or so.

I really wish I could speak to a comparison between the Black Star and Cascaras.. Maybe I’ll pick one up in the coming weeks since I’m becoming a true CA fanboy. Comfort is great for me, but the only set I’ve really had a slight issue with on my journey were the FF Grand Maestros, but those are HUGE and a terrible comparison. Ive had the Black Stars in my ears for almost 3.5 hours now with zero discomfort or pressure build up. As far as music, I’m a little all over the place. Main jams would be progressive metal > metalcore but I also listen to a fair amount of alternative/ classic rock/ bluegrass. Really depends on my mood and set but I don’t discriminate. I’m a sucker for talent. Xe6 isn’t a great comparison other than treble. Xe6 has an outlandish amount of mid bass. It’s incredible, but nothing like the Black Star. I would also say the Black Stars timbre and tonality is way more natural. I almost exclusively only use my Xe6 for hip-hop/ EDM. What type of music do you listen too? What are your preferences?